Page 4 of My Human Wife

“Lord Juo was under the impression that if I learned Imperial I’d be taken in by their religion and suffer brain damage.”

“Well, Imperials and humans are the same species. It’s a fair precaution. You won’t see any Imperials here. Wrong side of the galaxy.”

“I hadn’t even thought about it.”

“Play an instrument?”

I name off a few instruments I learned to play to please my master, “And I can sing.”

“Did you do a lot of singing for your master?”

“Yes.”

“Sex?”

“When asked.”

“Were you compliant?”

“I rarely had reason not to be. Are you finished?”

“You’re quite feisty for a human who was kept as part of a menagerie.” Then she puts the tablet down. “Well Lara from Earth, I think it’s time you presented yourself. You’ll have a better chance of finding a male while you still have some gold paint on you. Unfortunately, there’s not really a market for pale human kink here. Make sure you open your eyes wide. No one is put off by green eyes. You can thank the goddesses for those and maybe some desperate male will take pity on you. And my last piece of advice if you think a male might want you, sing a song. It’s so rare we hear someone actually able to sing. None of the males that visit here are wealthy enough to have ever seen a professional singer, it might be the only thing that saves you.”

Although my master doted on me, I know that most aliens on this side of the galaxy find my appearance repulsive. Visitors to Lord Juo’s menagerie never hid their reactions when I was presented as ‘the human woman’ from his collection. Sometimes I would be presented already painted gold and other times he would allow his special visitors to paint me themselves. I let that memory slip away as I follow the white-haired nun into the massive temple.

I hear worshippers before we reach the open dome. Once inside the main temple, the dark air fills with the sweet smell of incense. My eyes are drawn up and a massive statue of who I suppose is the Goddess of Fertility is looking down at me withlarge painted stone eyes. She’s like the Uru nun who hit me on the stairs outside but with enormous carved stone tentacles reaching all around the immense temple walls, inside every sucker is a small red candle. Above the statue is a round opening where I can see into space. Nothing but stars.My freedom if I don’t die here.

“You know which alien males will poison you with their sperm?”

“I didn’t think females had a choice in who chose them?”

“Females don’t but you can hide when you see the poisonous ones coming. Just don’t let the abbess see you. Now, go stand over there with the other females.” She points to an area under one of the Fertility Goddess’s outstretched tentacles, the candles in the suckers casting strange shadows on the space. As I approach, I notice there are about 20 other alien females in the offering area, but not one looks remotely humanoid. They all move away from me as I enter. I bow to them and say in Agnorrian which is the lingua franca in this part of the galaxy, “Bless us all.” The other females just stare at me as it’s a shock I can speak unaccented Agnorrian. There’s a nasty rumor that humans aren’t fully sentient and can only learn a few words and sentences, but not have complex thoughts. I let this roll off my back. Maybe they are scared to be here too. No lucky female ends up at the sex temple. Before the nun walks away I ask, “What happens if I don’t get chosen?”

“Pray to the goddess you do. Remember open those green eyes as wide as possible.”

I stand obediently with the other females. As the hours pass, it seems like everyone is being chosen except for me. The most beautiful tentacled females and the wealthiest are gone in seconds, the latter having paid for their lovers to come claimthem and the former being followed by would-be suitors. Out of boredom I try to strike up a conversation with some of the other females in the offering box, but they have no time to talk to me. I hear the word, ‘human’ on their lips like a curse so I decide to sit down and have a break from offering myself. I keep a lookout for the abbess though, no doubt she’d beat me again for sitting and I know it’s not acceptable as none of the other females are sitting, despite being noticeably exhausted.

There’s no way to tell time as there’s no sun or reference point, but I assume it’s late as the temple is almost empty except for some nuns. I’m the only female in the offering area now. A few males saunter in take one look at me and then quickly leave. With nothing else to do, I lie down in the offering area on the cold stone floor and look up at the Fertility Goddess. I question her, “Why don’t you help me?”

Out of nowhere, a purple tentacle slaps me hard across the face. I feel my teeth bite into the flesh of my mouth. I wipe the blood from my mouth and look up. It’s the Uru abbess who slammed my head against the steps earlier.

“You should be grateful human.” She grabs my arm roughly with another tentacle dragging me to my feet. “You’re lucky to be here. If I had been that judge I would’ve sent you directly to Gala. The Fertility Goddess doesn’t even see you because you’re human, not worth her time, not sentient. You need a master.”

“I need a medic,” I reply calmly.

“Only one visit to the infirmary a day and you’ve already used your visit.”

“Why not just let me go? Say I escaped.”

“I’m not going to doyoua favor at my expense. You will stay here, and you will try to find a male who will accept your filthy human flesh. Only then can you leave and go back to the IGC.”

“Go back to the IGC? What? I thought I’d be free if I paid homage to the Fertility Goddess.”

“Oh you foolish human female. This is just a stopgap for the IGC judge until he figures out what to do with you. And my guess is he assumes it’ll take you years for a male to pay homage with you which is why he sent you here in the first place. He can’t legally kill you and he doesn’t want to sell you because now it’s against the law, but he’s not going to set you free or he would’ve already done it. And that’s why I’m so annoyed. You’re going to be with us forever and I never wanted a human pet. But if you’re going to remain, I’m going to train you to be obedient if it’s the last thing I do.”

Gael

“You won’t believe this,” my first officer says from his station.

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